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There’s Only One State Where You Can’t Fly Commercial. Frontier Is Going to Change That

Taylor Rains January 30, 2020

Denver-based Frontier Airlines is one of the fastest-growing airlines in the United States. Since the start of 2020, the airline has announced dozens of new routes out of its hubs in Raleigh/Durham, NC, Las Vegas, NV, Orlando, FL, and Philadelphia, PA, expanding its footprint across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean. Not only is the carrier adding routes, but they are also reintroducing service into Boston (where it has not been since 2012) and into the only state without commercial airline service, Delaware.

A Return to Delaware

Frontier is extremely excited about its return to Delaware. The carrier previously flew routes between Orlando and Tampa to Wilmington Airport (ILG) in New Castle County, DE, but ended that service in 2015. The canceled route was due to the airline’s failure to keep up with its hasty expansion. Deleware, the second-smallest US state, as of now, doesn’t have its own, regular commercial airline service. The state’s nearly 1 million residents must drive to Philadelphia; Newark, New Jersey; Washington or other cities if they want to fly commercial.

However, this time around, the airline is confident the route will be a success. Commercial Senior Vice President Daniel Shurz explained, “We’re starting smaller this time, we know Florida is the biggest destination for the Northeast. In this part of the country…Orlando is unmatched in terms of demand. I’m telling you that we’re here to stay–that’s our intention–we don’t come back to airports with the expectation that we’re going to try it and pull out again, we’re confident from the data we see…that this time we’re here to stay.”

The route will operate between May 14th and August 6th on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, with the outbound flight leaving Orlando at 9:32 AM and the inbound flight leaving Wilmington at 12:38 PM. Although the route is only seasonal, Shurz suggests it may return in the winter months as well, with the goal to be a year-round service.

New Hub Routes

Delaware is not the only expansion out of Denver bases; Frontier also announced new seasonal routes out of Raleigh/Durham, Las Vegas, Orlando, and Philadelphia beginning this spring.

Raleigh/Durham